Anti-gay ballot money pours in

Zachary Coile, OF THE EXAMINER STAFF

Published 4:00 am, Tuesday, August 3, 1999

1999-08-03 04:00:00 PDT CALIFORNIA -- SACRAMENTO - Supporters of an initiative to ban gay marriage in California have raised almost four times as much money as those who hope to defeat the controversial ballot measure, according to filings with the secretary of state's office.

The reports, which were due Monday, show that the two campaign committees supporting the Knight initiative have raised $839,000 this year for the ballot measure.

By comparison, the campaign against it has raised only $223,000.

While voters won't decide the measure until March 7, 2000, the report is an early sign of the monetary advantage the initiative's backers are expected to have in their campaign to affirm that only heterosexual marriages are recognized by California.

Political analysts believe the initiative could be the most highly charged measure on the ballot, stirring the kind of bitter conflict that surrounded Propositions 209 and 187, initiatives on affirmative action and benefits for immigrants, which were both passed by voters.

The Knight initiative is seen by many gays and lesbians as a direct attack. Officially called the Definition of Marriage Initiative, it's better known by the name of its chief sponsor, state Sen. William J. "Pete" Knight, a conservative Republican from Palmdale, the Legislature's most ardent opponent of gay rights.

California family law already defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

The measure would go a step further by adding a clause that says only heterosexual marriages can be valid and recognized by the state.

Supporters believe the new language could help ensure that California never recognizes gay marriages, even if courts in the future rule that same-sex marriages are constitutional.

The new reports cover the campaign's efforts to raise money so far this year.

Between April 1 and June 30, the Protection of Marriage Committee, which backs the measure, raised $668,671 in contributions and loans. Californians for the Defense of Marriage, which helped get the measure on the ballot, raised $21,610.

Added to $150,000 raised earlier, their total was $839,289.

The opposition effort, Californians for Fairness, which is based in San Francisco, raised $165,236 during the same period. However a large share of that total - $68,956 - included non-monetary contributions, mostly free labor donated by the campaign's lawyers and accountants.

Added to $57,971 raised earlier, their total was $223,208.

Mike Marshall, campaign manager for the No on Knight effort, said its fund raising was handicapped because its office just opened in May and only began to seriously seek donations in mid-June.

"They will raise more than us," said Marshall, who predicts his campaign will raise and spend $5 million on the measure. "If we raised $10 million, they'd raise $15 million."

Rob Stutzman, spokesman for the initiative campaign, said the campaign is happy with its early fund-raising lead. But he added he expects the "no " side to spend at least as much to try to defeat the measure.

"Our opponents have vowed on numerous occasions to raise $10 million. We take them at their word," Stutzman said.

The new reports gave some insight into where each campaign will look for funds.

Initiative backers got some of their largest donations from well-heeled conservative donors with ties to the religious right.

The two single biggest donors in the period were Roland Hinz and Richard A. Riddle, both co-founders of the former Allied Business PAC, which strongly backed conservative causes and candidates in the Legislature. Both men gave $50,000.

The measure's opponents got their biggest contributions from John Goldman, president of Goldman Insurance in San Francisco, and his wife, Martha, who gave $25,000; and from the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay and lesbian political advocacy group, based in Washington, D.C., which also gave $25,000.

Marshall said the report provided more evidence that a small clique of donors was behind the Knight initiative.

"Once again it's clear that there's a handful of wealthy radical right people who are bankrolling this anti-gay effort," Marshall said. "These are the same people who are funding anti-gay efforts across the country."

Stutzman countered that most of the donations were small, from people of both political parties who agree that marriage should only be between a man and a woman.&lt;

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